Ranieri appointed Leicester coach

Former Chelsea boss Claudio Ranieri has been appointed the new manager of Leicester City, penning a three-year deal at the King Power Stadium.

The Italian replaces Nigel Pearson at the Foxes’ helm, who was sacked last month, with incidents off the pitch being cited as the reason for his dismissal, despite Pearson miraculously saving the club from relegation last season.

63-year old Ranieri hasn’t worked in England since he left Stamford Bridge in 2004, after leaving as manager of Atletico Madrid to join the Blues in September 2000. During his four-year spell, Chelsea finished runners-up in the Premier League, reached the Champions League semi-final and were FA Cup finalists.

However, Ranieri was sacked as the manager of the Greek national side after just four months last year following a poor start to Euro 2016 qualifying.

“Since I left Chelsea I have dreamt of another chance to work in the best league in the world again,” he said.

“I wish to thank the owner, his son and all the executives of the club for the opportunity they are giving me. Now I’ve only one way for returning their trust: squeeze all my energies to getting the best results for the team.”

Known as ‘The Tinkerman’, Ranieri has also managed Valencia, Parma, Juventus, Roma, Inter Milan and Monaco.